A lifelong observer, chronicler, and creative force, Lily Vakili has spent years gathering fragments of the world – memories, landscapes, voices, losses, joys – and transforming them into urgent, electric songs. She was raised across Honduras, Florida, Thailand, Puerto Rico, and Iowa – absorbing pieces of each place, each culture, along the way. This international upbringing shaped her worldview, her voice, and her lifelong search for connection. The past decade has seen her channel that force through multiple studio albums – released both as a solo artist and with her successful Vakili Band – each one experimenting with the wide, untamed possibilities of rock.
Off the heels of her 2025 full-length release Oceans Of Kansas and East Coast tour, Vakili released her first live EP, Live Wire on May 8, 2026, an in-studio, live audio and video recording of songs named for what fans and critics alike say is a perfect description of her charismatic performance style. For this stripped down and intimate six-song release, Vakili called upon her collaborator, the Grammy-Award winning, Emmy-nominated producer/engineer Reed Turchi, to produce the EP at his studio Second Take Sound (now Voyager Sound) in New York City. Live Wire reimagines old favorites and introduces new songs showcasing her emotionally raw, live sound – a genre-blending fusion of blues, rock, and art rock elements, backed by poetic storytelling.
Website • Instagram • Youtube • Spotify • Apple Music • Facebook
Mighty Joe Castro & The Gravamen hail from Philadelphia, PA, blending the vintage swagger of 1950s rock ‘n’ roll with a gritty, modern edge. Imagine Buddy Holly armed with a stack of effect pedals and some of Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds records. That’s the vibe.
Their sound is rooted in classic rockabilly, but it’s filtered through a postmodern lens—complete with sonic Easter eggs cribbed from old episodes of MTV’s 120 Minutes. Frontman Mighty Joe Castro crafts sharp, lyric-driven songs, while The Gravamen build cinematic atmospheres with Link Wray-meets-Jesus and Mary Chain guitars, booming doghouse bass, and foot-stomping swing beats. The band occupies a unique crossroads where Sun Records and Creation Records collide.
Going strong since 2018, the band debuted with the Wake Up, You’re Rockin’! EP, followed by their full-length album Come On Angels in 2020. Known for their high-energy live shows, they’ve shared stages with a diverse range of artists including The Squirrel Nut Zippers, The Heavy Heavy, Skinny Lister, Wayne Hancock, and Big Sandy & His Fly-Rite Boys.
Their latest release, Between the Lightning and the Thunder, dropped June 6, 2025, on vinyl, CD, and all major streaming platforms. Produced by Brian McTear and Amy Morrissey (Sharon Van Etten, Dr. Dog, Dead Milkmen) at Philadelphia’s Miner Street Recordings, the album marks an evolution in the band’s sound—more expansive, cinematic, and darkly electric than ever before.
Website • Instagram • Facebook • Bandcamp • Spotify • Apple Music
